Australian woman who called 911 shot dead by Minneapolis police

The Hennepin county medical examiner said it could not release the cause of her death.

Justine Ruszczyk was shot in Minneapolis after two officers responded to a call about a possible assault on Saturday (15 July) at 11.30pm local time, the Minnesota’s public safety department said - Representational ImageiStock

An Australian woman has been shot and killed by a US police officer near her home in Minneapolis. Details about what exactly happened are sketchy but local reports say the woman, Justine Ruszczyk, called 911 after hearing a noise near her home and was shot dead by an officer who responded to her call.

The incident took place at around 11.30pm local time (5.30am BST) the Minnesota's public safety department said. The police officers did not have their body cameras turned on.

US and Australian authorities have not publicly identified the victim or provided any details about the incident.

The victim, also known as Justine Damond, was reportedly shot in her driveway after she went out to see what was happening, but it is still unclear what led to the fatal shots.

The Hennepin county medical examiner told HuffPost that they could confirm the death of Ruszczyk, but could not release the cause of her death.

"Two Minneapolis police officers responded to a 911 call of a possible assault just north of the 5100 block of Washburn Avenue S just before 11.30pm Saturday. At one point, an officer fired their weapon, fatally striking a woman," the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said in a statement, according to the Star Tribune.

Minneapolis mayor Betsy Hodges said in a statement, "As mayor of our city, a wife, and a grandmother, I am heartsick and deeply disturbed by what occurred last night."

Ruszczyk reportedly hated America's gun culture but still moved from Australia to the US for love. The 40-year-old ran meditation workshops at the Lake Harriet Spiritual Community. She was living in the US for three years with her fiancé Don Damond, 50, and was preparing to marry him in August.

Her stepson, Zac Damond, 22, said in a video posted to Facebook that Ruszczyk had called police after hearing a noise near her house. Around 200 people held a vigil outside her home following the shooting.

Ruszczyk's death is now the focus of a major investigation in the city, which has been rocked by a spate of controversial police shootings.